New Trends in Olefin Production

Most olefins (e.g., ethylene and propylene) will continue to be produced through steam cracking (SC) of hydrocarbons in the coming decade. In an uncertain commodity market, the chemical industry is investing very little in alternative technologies and feedstocks because of their current lack of econ...

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Main Authors: Ismaël Amghizar, Laurien A. Vandewalle, Kevin M. Van Geem, Guy B. Marin
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2017-04-01
Series:Engineering
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2095809917302965
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spelling doaj-f6b142f60c8143038bffe0415c76a58e2020-11-24T22:18:53ZengElsevierEngineering2095-80992017-04-013217117810.1016/J.ENG.2017.02.006New Trends in Olefin ProductionIsmaël AmghizarLaurien A. VandewalleKevin M. Van GeemGuy B. MarinMost olefins (e.g., ethylene and propylene) will continue to be produced through steam cracking (SC) of hydrocarbons in the coming decade. In an uncertain commodity market, the chemical industry is investing very little in alternative technologies and feedstocks because of their current lack of economic viability, despite decreasing crude oil reserves and the recognition of global warming. In this perspective, some of the most promising alternatives are compared with the conventional SC process, and the major bottlenecks of each of the competing processes are highlighted. These technologies emerge especially from the abundance of cheap propane, ethane, and methane from shale gas and stranded gas. From an economic point of view, methane is an interesting starting material, if chemicals can be produced from it. The huge availability of crude oil and the expected substantial decline in the demand for fuels imply that the future for proven technologies such as Fischer-Tropsch synthesis (FTS) or methanol to gasoline is not bright. The abundance of cheap ethane and the large availability of crude oil, on the other hand, have caused the SC industry to shift to these two extremes, making room for the on-purpose production of light olefins, such as by the catalytic dehydrogenation of propane.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2095809917302965Olefin productionSteam crackingMethane conversionShale gasCO2 emissions
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Ismaël Amghizar
Laurien A. Vandewalle
Kevin M. Van Geem
Guy B. Marin
spellingShingle Ismaël Amghizar
Laurien A. Vandewalle
Kevin M. Van Geem
Guy B. Marin
New Trends in Olefin Production
Engineering
Olefin production
Steam cracking
Methane conversion
Shale gas
CO2 emissions
author_facet Ismaël Amghizar
Laurien A. Vandewalle
Kevin M. Van Geem
Guy B. Marin
author_sort Ismaël Amghizar
title New Trends in Olefin Production
title_short New Trends in Olefin Production
title_full New Trends in Olefin Production
title_fullStr New Trends in Olefin Production
title_full_unstemmed New Trends in Olefin Production
title_sort new trends in olefin production
publisher Elsevier
series Engineering
issn 2095-8099
publishDate 2017-04-01
description Most olefins (e.g., ethylene and propylene) will continue to be produced through steam cracking (SC) of hydrocarbons in the coming decade. In an uncertain commodity market, the chemical industry is investing very little in alternative technologies and feedstocks because of their current lack of economic viability, despite decreasing crude oil reserves and the recognition of global warming. In this perspective, some of the most promising alternatives are compared with the conventional SC process, and the major bottlenecks of each of the competing processes are highlighted. These technologies emerge especially from the abundance of cheap propane, ethane, and methane from shale gas and stranded gas. From an economic point of view, methane is an interesting starting material, if chemicals can be produced from it. The huge availability of crude oil and the expected substantial decline in the demand for fuels imply that the future for proven technologies such as Fischer-Tropsch synthesis (FTS) or methanol to gasoline is not bright. The abundance of cheap ethane and the large availability of crude oil, on the other hand, have caused the SC industry to shift to these two extremes, making room for the on-purpose production of light olefins, such as by the catalytic dehydrogenation of propane.
topic Olefin production
Steam cracking
Methane conversion
Shale gas
CO2 emissions
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2095809917302965
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